Brussels, 08/03/2010 The ETUC will discuss the aggravation of the economic crisis and notably the deterioration of the employment situation. Messages will be formulated in view of the EPSCO Council [[EPSCO: Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council]] of 8th and 9th March but also in view of the Tripartite Social Summit and Spring Council of 25th and 26th March. Proposals will include those to regulate the financial markets and to avoid the return of speculation that devastates economies.

Manchester, 05/03/2010 Secretary of State, Welcome to this official opening of the People’s History Museum. The people’s story is not an easy one. Sometimes as an old friend used to say to me – “the working class goes from defeat to defeat, to defeat to final victory” – I was never quite sure if he believed it. You will certainly see in this museum, misery, lost strikes and repression.

Brussels, 05/03/2010

Brussels, 04/03/2010

Rome, 04/03/2010 Luigi, delegates and fellow guests. It is a great pleasure to return to the UIL Congress and to have this opportunity for a short address. It is my normal wish when returning to address a Congress to paint a picture of our achievements and successes since we last met, while of course tackling the challenges that are new or are still outstanding.

Brussels, 03/03/2010 “How to deal with rising unemployment, especially among the young; how to tackle all the incentives in current tax systems and capital markets which encourage speculation and short-termism at the expense of long-term commitment to the real economy; and how to find new ways of raising public funds, especially using Financial Transaction Taxes and Eurobonds”.

Brussels, 03/03/2010 REACH says that industrial operators must register any substances they manufacture or import in quantities above one tonne a year with the new European Chemicals Agency. The CLP (Classification, Labelling, Packaging) Regulation says they have to notify ECHA of the classification and labelling of all hazardous substances they place on the market, no matter what the production volume. Too many European firms still do not know about these obligations, and could end up being fined if they do not fulfil them on time.

Athens, 24/02/2010 “Panta rhei” – everything flows – said Heraclitus. Abraham Lincoln once sent a message to the cotton workers of Manchester, who were unemployed because of their support for the blockade of Southern American posts in the war against slavery. Lincoln memorably said “The strongest bond of human sympathy outside the family relation should be one uniting working people of all nations and tongues.”

Brussels, 23/02/2010 Europe’s trade unions follow with great concern the situation in Greece and in particular the pressure by the Commission, the Eurozone Ministers and the European Central Bank (ECB) on the Greek government for harsher austerity. The Labour movement in Europe stands in full solidarity with Greek workers in their struggle against job cuts, wage freezes, wage and pension cuts. Europe’s message to the Greek people should be one of stability and social progress and not one of deprivation and social dumping.

Brussels, 22/02/2010

Brussels, 15/02/2010 Says John Monks, ETUC General Secretary: “Governments and central banks in Europe have massively bailed out the banks. Now that financial markets are turning against public finances, governments need to close ranks to save themselves from the speculators. Europe urgently needs a common Eurobond, a European rating agency and new taxation revenues including a Transaction Tax”.

Brussels, 12/02/2010

Brussels, 12/02/2010 This is unsatisfactory and it is to be hoped that Europe’s finance ministers can devise specific and clear plans when they meet next week and so add much needed credibility to the EU’s approach. The most vulnerable economies in the eurozone are likely to need some help to maintain stability, and the EU needs a clear plan with the scale of assistance available, and the obligations to be incurred if it is sought.